New York State is in the process of passing historic legislation requiring that guns registered in NY have this micro-stamping feature. California has already passed such a law. Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maryland, Wisconsin, and Illinois are all working on passing similar laws. This is such a common sense piece of legislation without any obvious down side that you have to wonder why it’s being approached at state-level and not a piece of federal legislation.

BP and the US government have yet again been dishonest about the nature and size of the oil gusher leaking into the Gulf of Mexico water; it is over twice the highest estimates to date.

Did you know that in America gay men still can’t donate blood? The ban on gay blood donors is based in the worst kind of anti-gay prejudice and AIDS hysteria from early in the epidemic. America needs to end the ban and allow gay men to donate blood. Science supports lifting the ban, and so does basic fairness.

I’m shocked, shocked to learn from TPM’s Brian Beutler that Republican Minority Leader John Boehner advocated a federal bailout of BP to help them pay the massive bill for damages from their company-caused oil disaster. Then, realizing what he’d just said, Boehner’s spox ran for semantic cover.

Looks like the Democratic establishment is going to triangulate against labor now. Unlike their bullshit claims about “standing up to Wall Street,” at least this one is from the heart.

Well, if Robert Menendez thinks the money that went to Halter was tainted, why is he taking it himself? If it’s coming from a “DC Special Interest Group,” he should give it back.

Not only the Gulf disaster but several wars, tension with Iran, and terrorism directly or indirectly could link back to our addiction to oil, says former CNN foreign correspondent Tony Collings.

Senator Robert Menendez, leader of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, sent out a memo deriding labor unions who supported Bill Halter as “special interests in Washington.” The DSCC’s website also featured an article slamming labor unions for supporting Halter.

Women’s votes are crucial to pass initiatives legalizing and regulating cannabis. So why is there such a huge gender gap, with women’s approval far below the 50 percent mark?

You may remember, the first day after BP revealed the existence of oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico, they talked about setting the oil on fire — a plan which is now likely to become operational. I hope that the Justice Department is taking all of this burning oil into account when determining their fines and penalties for negligent environmental damage.

It takes some gall for the Senator who literally represents Wall Street to not just congratulate Blanche Lincoln for “fighting Wall Street” with her sham derivatives bill, but to in the same breath congratulate her on “fighting unions.”